HOUSTON — Police officers investigating a shooting on the city’s south side, shot a killed a man they say pointed a pistol at them. The officers, assigned to the Houston Police Department’s Crime Reduction Unit, were among several who were sent to an apparent shootout at an apartment complex in the 10900 block of Martindale Road. That happened just before 10:30 p.m. Friday.
At that scene, police say someone had shot a woman in the leg. She’s at a local hospital where she’s expected to survive.
While police officers were there, several people called 911 telling dispatchers a man with a gun was at a different apartment complex just blocks away.
Houston Police Assistant Chief Bobby Dobbins says two officers left the original scene and headed to 5901 Selinsky Road. There, Dobbins says, the officers found a man with a gun on the stairs of one of the apartment buildings and neighbors said that man had tried to barge in.
According to Dobbins, the man told officers “go ahead” and “I’m ready” several times as they ordered him to put down his pistol. The assistant chief says when the man pointed the gun towards the officers, they shot him. The man, who police believe is in this 30s, died at the scene.
Investigators are now trying to determine if he is one of the shooters connected to the original scene.
“We think the officers did a good job.” Assistant Chief Dobbins said during an early morning media briefing Saturday, adding “Unfortunately they had to take a man’s life tonight. We’re never happy about that but you know officers have to protect themselves.”
Neither of the officers were hurt. HPD says both have been with the department around four and a half years.
It is typical with shootings involving Houston Police Officers that the department's special investigation team leads an investigation into the shooting, along with investigators from the Harris County District Attorney's Office.
Police have not identified the officers involved or the man who died.
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